Statistics on the Connection between Mental Illness and Drug Abuse
Statistics shows that over 39% of individuals that have severe mental illness are characterized by drug abuse. According to American Medical Association, mental illness and addiction problems trigger prolonged distress that results in mental impairment (Hiday, Borum & Wagner, 2014). Customarily, individuals that deal with some types of drugs or alcohol addiction develop conditions that leads to mental illness. Self-medication of drugs and alcohol addiction are attributed by prolonged distress that enhances chances of developing a mental problem. It is observed that common mental illnesses such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder are associated with some type of drugs abuse and addiction. Prolonged mental illness that is attributed by drugs abuse is a dual diagnosis problem for individuals dealing with mental illness and drugs addiction. This condition influences people’s wellbeing since it requires proper medical treatment for the affected individuals to reclaim their habitual wellbeing.
Co-Occurrence of Mental Disorders and Substance Abuse
According to Swartz, Swanson & Burns (2016), most mental disorders co-occur with substance abuse. Commonly, disorders associated with depression, bi-polar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and eating disorders are attributed by the connection between mental illness and addiction. According to a report by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration in 2015 shows that over 8 million individuals suffering from dual diagnosis were affected by the complexities of conditions worsted by the association of mental illness with drugs abuse (Swartz, Swanson & Burns, 2016). Notably, mental disorders and drugs addiction have identical symptoms that complicate diagnosis and treatment. This aspect complicates the capacity to pinpoint conditions attributed by mental illness and drugs abuse. As a result, patients suffer other health problems due to the co-occurring disorders.
The Impact of Substance Abuse on Mood and Anxiety Disorders
Individuals that are diagnosed with a mood or any type of anxiety disorder are perceived to have an association with substance abuse. It is observed that substance addiction increases the symptoms of mental illness that is triggered by the effect of the abused substance (Constantine, Petrila, Andel, Givens, Becker, Robst & Howe, 2010). For instance, alcohol addiction enhances the chances of an individual to interact with antidepressants, mood stabilizers and anxiety pills that makes the individual’s medication less effective. Advanced resistance to medical treatment due to drugs abuse results in mental impairments that results in advanced medical illnesses. Due to the increased capacity for individuals to self-medicate with alcohol and drugs, the combination of mental impairment and drugs addiction makes their condition unbearable.
The Association between Mental Illness and Substance Abuse
A research conducted by The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) shows that mental illness is associated with continuous abuse of varying propositions of drugs. It is observed that individuals with metal illness are associated by 38 percent abuse of alcohol, 44 percent use of cocaine and 40 percent use of cigarettes. NBER states that individuals that have some type of mental impairment are perceived to have abused a combination of over 65 percent alcohol, over 80 percent of cocaine and 68 percent of cigarettes and abuse prescription of opioids by women (Hiday, Borum & Wagner, 2014). It is observed that post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects over 6.8 percent of individuals in America causing them to avoid people, places and memories associated with a tragic event that contributed to stress. Thus, mental illness and drugs addiction are problems that are attributed by uncontrolled behaviors that influences health, which in turn affects their mental wellbeing due to reliance on drugs additives. Thus, the interactions between mental illness and addiction makes treatment of the developed disorder more difficult due to the complexities of the mental disorder. It is observed that over 60% of mental disorders are difficult to treat due to their association with drugs such as alcohol due to the reliance of their affected individual on the abused substance.
The Impact of Mental Illness and Drug Abuse on Violence
Mental illnesses and drugs abuse results in wide range of complex generic and environmental factors that are associated by the symptoms of the metal disorder based on the abused substances. Individuals that suffers mental illness due to substance abuse are observed to be violent due to the drugs that they abuse that aggravate their symptoms. Addiction of drugs such as alcohol among other illicit drugs has been perceived to have a heightened risk for individuals to commit violence. Recent studies shows that individuals that are have developed mental illness due to drugs addiction are prone to committing some form of violence due to the ending results of the effects of the abused drugs. According to Swartz, Swanson & Burns (2016), over 20% of individual arrested in 2016 due to violence were diagnosed with some type of mental illnesses that were associated with addiction of some drugs or alcohol (Swartz, Swanson & Burns, 2016).
Mental Illness, Drug Abuse, and the Legal System
It is observed that individuals with mental illnesses associated with drugs addiction regularly comes in contact with some type of government or medical programs such as jail, mental health centers and criminal or civil courts. Co-occurring substance abuse and mental illness results in some form of law encroachment due to mental impairment. Drugs addiction for instance abuse of alcohol results in antisocial personalities. Over 55% of individuals associated with addiction of alcohol are associated with antisocial personalities that makes them to incapable to co-inhabit with other individuals in the society (Hiday, Borum & Wagner, 2014). Due to impulsive behavior, this individuals are constantly in contact with government bodies such as prison of funded organizations associated with mental health programs. This is because of difficulty to acknowledge riles and discerning the right from the wrong that results in distress.
The Impact of Mental Illness and Drug Abuse on Daily Life
Mental illness and addiction to drugs influences individual’s capacity to maintain and function in their daily lives. It is perceived that mental illnesses associated with drugs addiction makes individuals to lack the capacity to maintain any type of relationship and organizing themselves making them incapable of leading a normal life (Swartz, Swanson & Burns, 2016). As a result, many individuals with mental illness and drugs addicts are likely to be homeless due to the contributing factors of the symptoms and the effect of the abused drug to the individual. 70 percent of individuals that are homeless in America today are observed to be affected by aspects attributed by substance abuse (Hiday, Borum & Wagner, 2014). Drugs addiction and mental illness are the leading factors contributing to homeliness among individuals with mental disorders and a history of drugs abuse that have resulted in addiction. Many individuals with mental illness and abuses drugs are incapable of overcoming the housing struggles because of their habits that influences their wellbeing due to concentration to drugs and mental health programs (Constantine, Petrila, Andel, Givens, Becker, Robst & Howe, 2010). As a result, the double factor of being a drug addict and suffering from mental disorders increases the chances of failure for most individuals that have problems associated with drugs abuse and mental impairment.
In Conclusion
It can be depicted that mental illness has a close association with drugs addiction. This is because, most mental disorders are associated with symptoms co-occurring with drugs addition. Similarly, most mental illnesses have a close relation with drug addiction since mental impairment is contributed by drugs abuse such as over dependence on alcohol. Further, combination of drugs that are abused by individuals results in development of some form of mental disorders. For instance, post traumatic affects most individuals that abuse wide range of drug substances involving alcohol, cigarettes and opioids in women. This aspect results in antisocial behaviors that results in violence among the individuals that abuse drugs. The symptoms of the mental illness and the effect of the drugs abused by individuals results in violation of laws and observation of the government regulations. Moreover, due to the incapacity if the individuals that abuse drugs and have developed a mental illness due to abuse of substances and addiction, such individuals are incapable of maintaining their normal life which leads to homeliness of the individuals that have developed mental illness and have drugs addiction.
References
Constantine, R. J., Petrila, J., Andel, R., Givens, E. M., Becker, M., Robst, J. " Howe, A. (2010). Arrest trajectories of adult offenders with a serious mental illness. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 16(4), 319-339. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0020852
Hiday, V. A., Borum, R. " Wagner, R. (2014). Severe mental illness tied to higher rates of substance use.
Oxford University Press.
Swartz, M. S., Swanson, J. W. " Burns, B. J. (2016). Taking the wrong drugs: The role of substance abuse and medication noncompliance in violence among severely mentally ill individuals. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 33, S75-S80.
